26 Metro School Districts Face Budget Shortfalls: Layoffs Likely

TWIN CITIES, MN — At least 26 school districts in the Twin Cities metropolitan area and 33 school districts in Greater Minnesota are facing immediate budget deficits that could result in hundreds of teachers and support staff being laid off, along with significant cuts to school programs, in the coming year.

The gloomy budget forecasts are based on studies from the Metro School Districts and the Minnesota Rural Education Association.

Governor Mark Dayton Tuesday announced a proposal for $137.9 million in one-time emergency school aid, which would provide additional funding for school districts across the state.

Dayton’s proposal would increase school funding by 2 percent, resulting in $124.1 million in new one-time aid to school districts in fiscal year 2019, and $13.8 million in fiscal year 2020.

This new funding amounts to an additional $126 for every student in Minnesota, according to Dayton's office.

“From 2003 to 2012, our state’s public school aid decreased, in real dollars, by almost $2,000 per student,” Dayton said in a statement. “Since then, we have reversed that trend, increasing per-pupil aid by more than $1,000 in real dollars and investing $2 billion overall in E-12 education.

“Still, many school districts throughout our state are now reporting that they face severe financial shortfalls, which will force the layoffs of hundreds of teachers and support staff in the next school year. This Emergency School Aid is essential to ensure that our schools can continue to provide the high quality educations their students need and deserve. I urge Legislators to join me in addressing the urgent needs of our students and teachers.”

In Burnsville, 40 jobs may be eliminated to cover a $6.7 million budget gap, reports the Star Tribune. Up to 400 positions could be eliminated in Minneapolis.

"We just have this gap that keeps on growing," Lisa Rider, the Burnsville-Eagan-Savage School District’s executive director of business services, told the newspaper. "That’s a challenge for schools across the state."

Dayton's emergency request may surprise Republican lawmakers who have already begun work on budgets.

In a statement to KSTP, Republican State Senator Carla Nelson — chair of the E-12 Finance Committee — said many of the school district budget issues were not a result of state policy.

"The Legislature has increased school funding every year – including significant new dollars above and beyond built-in increases for the 2018-2019 school years," she told the station. "These budget shortfalls are not of the state's making."

"The truth is, some school districts have not been realistic about how much they can afford to pay their employees, and have entered into union contracts that are squeezing classroom budgets. Also, special education has been a huge cost driver that the federal government has failed to live up to their promise to fully fund. Republicans have proposed a task force to try to bring those costs down."

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